Tension at Vandora's Temple
Tension at Vandora's Temple is the eigth map in 7 Bullets. 'Description' Jones attacks the temple outpost of the Dead Scorpions. 'Weapons and Items' Note: the number of weapons and items that appear will vary based on difficulty. *Armor x3 *Combat Assault Rifle grenades x6 *Combat Assault Rifle clip x4 *Flak Box x6 *Flak Shell x6 *Health Vial x9 *Machine Mag clip x6 *Med Box x2 *Nali Fruit x13 *Rations x10 *Thigh Pads x2 *Dispersion Pistol Powerup x3 'Creatures and Enemies' *Spinner x5 *Minigun Cannon x8 *Tentacle x2 *Terran Pirates x18 Translator Messages #'Quincy, journal:' I saw a strange thing this morning. I was hiking to a old formation near the Kran wreck, above the Trench line as Drago and his squad were preparing to ambush the soldiers. I watched the fight take place from afar, but something by the Kran caught my eye. It looked like a Skaarj but it was different...it emerged from some kind of vent hatch on the outer hull and glared at me. His eye glowed bright red, like some kind of demon. My first thought was my weapon, but before I could aim the creature was gone. #'Kireth's journal:' The two-armed warriors are rounding us up. Jahl tried to reason with them, but they attacked him and beat him so badly he couldn't walk. One of the stronger warriors, the dark skinned one, used a blade to cut out poor Jahl's eyes. After that none of us made any more protests. They have taken us to a dead end passage and have been watching us here for several hours, it seems they are preoccupied with other matters. They mean to kill us, I am sure of it! Melnori was right, we should have left when we had the chance. I was naive to think these creatures were any different than the Skydemons. All I can do is pray... #'Roland Kurgan's work report:' We salvaged as many supplies as we could from Passage E through G before they completely collapsed. We gave up trying to search for the bodies of our friends who were trapped inside, there's just too much rubble. I'm boarding up the doors to these corridors. Aside from the lift over here that leads to the old Theater, this area is pretty much useless. We'll use the hallways as supply storage until the rockslides have stopped and we can begin digging again. #'Isidai, caretaker's journal:' The day I feared has finally come. The two-armed female who wears the metal armor has ordered our death. The others were rounded up as I managed to escape into this old drainage tunnel. I heard them die, it was terrible! The warriors are looking for me, I dare not make a sound. I injured myself in my hurry to escape. My wound is begining to hurt, I hope it isn't infected. #'Dorian Grahm's diary:' We finally got the three terminals installed for the gate to Passage C. Petra made sure each sector leader has a code to one terminal, since I'm sector leader of Passage A I have the code to terminal 2, which is ###. Boris and Uziel have the other two. Petra told us not to write them down, but I'll do it anyway. I have a habit of forgetting things. #'Dorian Grahm's diary:' Petra arrived with the White Lotus, look's like we're expecting trouble. Word has it that the Nali Sky Haven in the atmosphere over the Sunspire was under attack and a Skaarj EMP discharge was shot down into the Kran. The Kran is under their control so Drago used the scanning equipment to investigate. Sure enough, we indentified a USM battle cruiser in orbit. Petra ordered the entire temple staff to start setting up the automated weapons. Also, she wanted all the Nali we have wandering the temple to be rounded up in Passage C and shot. Too bad for them I guess. #'Isidai, caretaker's journal:' One of the two-armed warriors dropped something into the grate above my hiding place. It was a piece of paper with some written words that I could not understand. I did notice a few symbols that were underlined several times, I copied them into my journal. They look like this, " ### ". I may need these symbols to escape. #'Benjamin Nathaniel's diary:' That cunt Zofia thought she was hot shit when she talked down to me the other day, but I made her shut up. She won't be doing that again. Stupid bitch. That faggot Boris heard what I did and tried to start something. Lucky for him Xander and Pete were there to break us up. Boy better watch his ass, I'm gonna cut him! #'Benjamin Nathaniel's diary:' Petra came by with her posse, seems we like we might have some company. For a bitch, she's pretty tough. I'd love to get a piece of that. She ordered us to power up the turrets and kill the Nali that are hanging around the place. No problem for me, I hate those fuckers. Me and Kurgan will take care of them. #'Peter Saint's diary:' Me, Benny, and Kurgan set up a few turrets in various parts of the temple. I personally don't like working with Benny. Rapists make me sick, and I heard he busted up Zofia pretty good. This sent Boris off the deep end, I caught him standing over Benny with a gun to the guy's temple in the middle of the night. I talked him out of it, but he looked like he really lost it. Fucking Benny didn't even wake up, idiot came this close to death and he doesn't even realize it. #'Zofia's diary:' I hate this place. I hate the smell, I hate Drago's bullshit law, I hate that scumbag Benny, and I hate myself for getting here in the first place! I wanted to sneak out so many times, but I guess I'm not as strong as I thought I was. We're supposed to be expecting company from USM soon. How could they know we are here? Unless...they are here for another reason. Nevertheless, Drago is organizing a suprise ambush for them. I really do hope they come, maybe I can escape in the confusion. I'd have to convince Boris to come along too, that guy is so sweet to me. #'Roland Kurgan's diary:' Me and Dorian tried to find a way into the lower passage that collapsed 8 months ago. Still no luck, the whole section has completely been cut off. When the place went down, four of our guys were in there, including Ash. Then we got Uziel and Peter as replacements, but you don't just replace guys like Ash, Kelly, Bueller, and Connor. I'm hoping we can at least find a way in there to give them a proper burial. These guys were my friends. #'Roland Kurgan's diary:' Petra and those crazy White Lotus freaks have been here for days now and the others are all on edge. I think the White Lotus guys freak them out, myself included but I try not to show it. Petra only seems to converse with them, her comlink that opens a channel to Drago, and myself. I guess she remembers me from the Rikers. God, seems so long ago. Today I have to round up the Nali still hanging around and execute them. I'd rather keep them around since they know alot about harvesting the herbs and mineral ore, but then again I can't risk the tall bastards helping any USM soldiers when and if they do show up. We can always get more Nali. #'Ash's diary:' It has been a week since my team got trapped in these old tunnels. The cave-in has blocked every passage out of here, believe me we've looked. The Spinners keep coming, crawling out of the fucking walls...we're low on ammo and food. Kelly has a fever, I don't think he'll make it through the night. I wish there was a way to signal the others and let them know we're still alive, but the ground is too thick. No way they could hear us. The spider bite on my arm has been itching alot lately. I hope it isn't infected. I can't believe I survived the Rikers to die like this... #And Vandora came forth, with fire from the Sky upon her lips, and sanctified the sacred fountain with her kiss. Thus, she said, he who follows me shall cast off the bonds of flesh and become as elusive as the mist. #'USM data journal 438, Private J. Kessie:' We found an opening over some sort of courtyard that the enemy is using as a storage outpost. Crowley says we're gonna scout the territory before using the cables to climb down. We have a good shot if we can surprise them, but alot of us are wounded. At the moment we still don't know how many we're up against or where these Humans came from. Speculation says they might be what's left of the Vortex Riker's prison population. #'USM data journal 112, Lt. Crowley:' I'm leaving this entry open for Jones. If you're reading this then our plan to attack the temple failed and I'm either captured or dead. So listen up my friend, the enemy still has the data template, and they have it at their outpost which is a mile north of here. You have to get there Jones, one way or another. There is a locking mechanism somewhere in this temple for the gate that blocks the path to their facility. Forget about us, complete your mission! Good luck Jones. #Vandora, Goddess of Lightning. #'Petra's log, entry 9211:' USM didn't stand a chance. We took them down with little difficulty. The survivors have been brought to the Stronghold, along with the encrypted template taken from the soldier who overthrew the Skaarj forces in the Kran single handedly. The man was unconcious, we would have finished him there but Drago decided to leave him to fend for his own. I would have done the same, it takes quite a warrior to take on an entire legion of Skaarj commandos alone. That man deserves a better death than to be slit in his sleep. If he ventures to the temple, I will give him a death worthy of his skill. I welcome the challenge. #'Carson, journal:' I get uneasy when that jet comes by to drop off the shipments. Shore engineered a fuel using the Tarydium waste energy powering the Terraniux. The sludge is an efficient fuel source but its unstable nature makes it difficult to contain. I saw a drum roll off a supply crane once, and not that acidic corrosive shit the Skaarj use in their mines....this was pure eradiated waste, about a quarter of what powers that jet. Blew a crater deep enough to collapse a tanker and 3 storage houses. That was before we abandoned the Harobed region. #'Royce Kelly's diary:' The Nali herbs have helped my fever...but I'm too weak to move. Ash made a last ditch effort to find help...or at least he said that was his plan. Fucking asshole...probably just saving his own skin like he did when the Rikers was going down. Can't say I blame him though...I would have done the same if our situations were reversed. I'm writing this last entry because I've come to accept the obvious...I'm going to die down here. I'm going to die and I never did anything. I'm a rotten person, I deserve to be dead. I could turn my gun on myself but there's no style in suicide. I'm just gonna sit here and let the little bastards come... #'Isidai, caretaker's journal:' The two-armed warriors have allowed myself and some other Nali to remain at the temple to pray. We try to avoid them as much as possible, but sometimes they harass us, especially when they've been consuming the ale. They beat us in such instances, myself included. Their violence has turned lethal a few times and our small party of ten has been reduced to six. We dare not try to leave, they would surely kill us! They seem to tolerate our existence because we help them grow herb patches in the lower tunnels and for all the labor we do. But how much longer is this tolerance going to last? #'Isidai, caretaker's journal:' The two-armed warriors continue to bring their technology into the temple from their fortress at Noork's Elbow. They have placed the strange energy based torches in most sections of the ruin and done their best to support the decaying construction. But age takes its toll and the reconstruction is constant. The poison spewed into the soil from their facility up north does not help matters, now all the water has turned into waste. The air smells of rot. The desecration of this place makes my soul ache. #'Boris Clague's Diary:' Benjamin killed a Nali today, he's such a crazy bastard. This poor thing was just gathering some broken tile fragments and Benny had to fuck around. He beat the shit outta the helpless creature and then they hung it by its feet over the acid pool. Him and the others took turns tossing knives at the Nali's feet until one of them cut the cord. I'm seriously getting sick of this, the stuff they do sometimes is just...disgusting. Even to a guy like me. #'Boris Clague's Diary:' Generator 31 in Passage C went out, I have to repair it with Peter. Goddamn portable units have such a shitty endurance to the dust down here. I'm surprised this place doesn't fall apart , it's only a matter of time anyway with all the sludge eating away at the foundation. I know we need the power, but the Tarydium Fusion crap they're doing at the Elbow is having alot of nasty consequences. Anyway, I'll need my passcode for the Passage C terminal. The code is ### and needs to be entered into the first terminal. #'Xander Fisher's diary:' Drago's bitch showed up today to inspect the new gate control consoles. She's a tough one, none of the guys try to fuck around with her, even Benny the rapist. Bitch like that will freeze a guy's dick off, and those crazy White Lotus psychos are always with her. I heard alot of insane stuff about them, that whole group was supposed to be executed on the Rikers. #Uziel Reilly's diary: I was clearing some ceiling parasites off the ceilings of the old passages when I heard a soft whimper around the corner. It was Zofia, she was all cut up and bloody like someone beat the shit out of her. Her pants were torn up too. She shoved me out of the way and told me to mind my own buisness. I figure it was Benjamin, he's been taunting Zofia for months. Looks like he got her cornered and had his way. Fucking scumbag prick. Zofia is too proud to go to Drago about it, Drago would probably have Benny's balls on a dish. That shit don't fly with the boss. Sooner or later Benjamin's gonna mess with the wrong person.